Hypertension

It may be more important than ever to eat an apple a day to keep the doctor away. A recent study cites white coat hypertension, a term coined for people whose blood pressure rises in the presence of a doctor. Such occurrences can cause misdiagnosis for as many as 1-in-5 patients. According to the study, as many as 20% of patients treated for hypertension may be receiving unnecessary medication.

Consuming too little calcium may put you at greater risk for hypertension, according to research at Oregon Health Sciences University in Portland. The university study of federal health statistics found the most significant nutritional difference between hypertensives and people with normal blood pressure was their calcium intake. People with low calcium intakes tend to have higher blood pressure.

As many as 50 million Americans suffer from high blood pressure, a condition that places them at increased risk of stroke, heart problems and kidney disease. Yet many physicians do not adopt the aggressive approach to treating hypertension recommended by federal guidelines issued in 1977. That lack of aggressiveness was further documented in a new study of Veterans Affairs hospitals published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

A Los Angeles gang member was convicted Thursday of four counts of first-degree murder in the mistaken-identity shootings of four relatives of retired professional football star Kermit Alexander. Horace Burns, 20, sat motionless as the jury--which must next decide whether Burns receives the death penalty or life in prison without possibility of parole--announced its verdict to Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Aurelio Munoz.

Watson Pharmaceuticals Inc. said it won Food and Drug Administration approval to sell a new once-daily treatment for mild to moderate high blood pressure. Watson said it expects to begin selling the drug, Microzide, in the first quarter. Microzide is the first branded drug that Corona-based Watson has developed. The introduction of Microzide will be supported by a team of 60 salespeople, Watson said. Microzide is a diuretic type of hypertension drug. The U.S.

One of the obstacles in treating hypertension is getting people to take it seriously, partly because of myths such as these: * Myth: Hypertension only strikes people who eat high-cholesterol, high-sodium foods and who don't get enough exercise. Such traits certainly are associated with high blood pressure, but many people with good lifestyle habits develop high blood pressure. * Myth: High blood pressure starts at a certain "magic number."

Of the myriad numbers that define you--height, shoe size, ZIP code, weight, age, Social Security and telephone--the most crucial for your health may be the ones that represent your blood pressure. If your numbers are up, you could be courting serious health problems. About 50 million Americans--one in five--have high blood pressure, or hypertension, as it's more formally known.

Predicting who will get high blood pressure is an inexact science, but two recent studies suggest that you are more likely to have hypertension if you are toothless or have trouble metabolizing sugar. * In a UC San Francisco study, researchers led by dentist John Hutton found that toothless people who do not wear dentures are more likely to have high blood pressure than denture wearers.

Millions of people classified with high blood pressure may not really have the problem after all, according to a provocative UCLA study that counters the prevailing wisdom and questions government health guidelines for treating hypertension. The study, which appears today in the Lancet medical journal, drew sharp criticism from hypertension researchers, who said it ignored extensive clinical evidence on the benefits of controlling hypertension.